Murder trial to begin for Illinois man charged in fatal stabbing of Palestinian American boy
Joseph Czuba, 71, is accused of stabbing Wadea Al-Fayoume to death and seriously injuring the boy's mother, Hanaan Shahin, 32. He has been charged with murder, attempted murder, aggravated battery and hate crime in connection with the attack.
Czuba pleaded not guilty to the charges in October 2023. He was ordered detained until trial.
Wadea was stabbed 26 times and died in the hospital. Shahin was seriously injured after she was stabbed more than a dozen times as she called for help and tried to protect her son, investigators have said.
The stabbings occurred on Oct. 14, 2023, days after the Hamas attack on Israel in which about 1,200 people were killed around 250 taken hostage, according to the country's officials. Israel's subsequent offensive has killed more than 48,000 people in Gaza, according to health officials in the enclave.
The attack was investigated as an anti-Muslim hate crime. Prosecutors have said Czuba targeted the mother and son because of their Muslim faith.
The day after the attack, then-President Joe Biden denounced the stabbings.
'The child's Palestinian Muslim family came to America seeking what we all seek — a refuge to live, learn and pray in peace,' he said at the time.
George D. Lenard, the public defender representing Czuba, said by phone Thursday night that he does not comment on cases while they are pending.
Shahin and her son rented rooms from Czuba at his home in Plainfield Township, Illinois, about 40 miles southwest of downtown Chicago.
Czuba's wife told investigators that days before the attack, her husband said he wanted Shahin and her son to 'move out of the home.' That same day, Czuba confronted Shahin about the situation in the Middle East, according to court documents.
Just before he attacked her, Czuba told Shahin 'he was angry at her for what was going on' in Israel, Assistant State's Attorney Michael Fitzgerald wrote in the petition requesting that Czuba be detained.
Shahin 'stated she responded to him 'let's pray for peace,'' and that 'Czuba gave her no chance to do anything' before he attacked her with a knife, according to the petition.
Family friend Yousef Hannon told NBC News at the time that Shahin didn't expect Czuba would hurt her son because he had been like a grandfather to Wadea and had even built him a tree house.
'The child, when he saw Czuba, ran to him for a hug and instead was stabbed 26 times,' Hannon said.
Czuba's wife, Mary Czuba, told investigators that her husband had become obsessed with the war between Israel and Hamas, authorities have said.
Shahin told police she had been texting Czuba's wife earlier that week about his 'hatred for Muslims.'
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
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